Shipment of Fifth WGS Satellite Postures Air Force for Launch

LOS ANGELES AIR FORCE BASE, El Segundo, Calif. – The U.S. Air Force Space Command Space and Missile Systems Center’s fifth Wideband Global Satellite communication spacecraft arrived March 9 at the Shuttle Landing Facility, Fla.

The WGS-5 spacecraft will undergo final processing and encapsulation at Astrotech Corporation and will be transported to the launch pad at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, where it is scheduled to launch atop a Delta IV launch vehicle once the booster is cleared for flight.

WGS is the only military satellite communication system that can support simultaneous X- and Ka-band communications, with cross banding that makes communicating across terminal types transparent to the warfighter. WGS currently collects and routes real-time data through X-band, K-band, and switchable X-/Ka-band terminals being used for strategic, tactical, and comm-on-the-move communications.

Media representatives who would like to interview a subject matter expert or learn more about the WGS-5 satellite should send an e-mail to: smcpa.media@us.af.mil